


Quiet Sniffle

by infectedscrew



Category: Batman (Comics)
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Sick Character, Sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-04
Updated: 2018-12-04
Packaged: 2019-09-07 14:15:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16855513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/infectedscrew/pseuds/infectedscrew
Summary: Jason catches Dick out on the streets when he really shouldn't be.





	Quiet Sniffle

Jason should have known something was wrong the second he spotted Dick.

Not only was the older man outside of his normal patrol run—something Jason was going to have to discuss with him and the big Bat later—but he was also having one hell of a time sticking his landings. He was sure that, in the space of five minutes, Dick had flubbed two flips and one jump. Something that should’ve come as naturally as breathing was suddenly off-kilter.

It was almost frustrating to watch. Concerning, actually, not that Jason would admit outloud.

Feigning casual, he leaned on the fire escape he’d been lurking on. He propped his chin up on the back of his hand and looked down at the alleyway.

“The judges are going to take points off for that one,” he called down to Dick.

Dick jerked at the noise and whipped his head up. Clearly, he had thought that he was alone and his mistakes had gone unnoticed.

“What’re you doing here?” Dick asked.

“Could ask you the same question,” Jason responded without pause. “You are in my territory.”

The smile Dick sent his way could’ve been called an ‘attempt at cheeky’. Instead it came across as shaky, exhausted. Just saying it made Jason’s chest clench and that same irritating concern bubbled up.

“Think the terrible Red Hood’ll let it slide just this once?”

As Jason stared at him, Dick teetered and had to quickly grab the dumpster for support. It was the final straw. He had about three guesses as to what was wrong and he hoped it wasn’t any of them.

“What’s wrong with you?” Jason demanded, already starting to uncoil from his casual position.

“What? Me? Nothing,” Dick said, a little too quickly.

Jason snorted. He hauled himself up and over the fire escape. His boots hit the dirty alley floor hard. Straightening, he strode toward Dick. Any criminal in the city said it was the stalking movements of a predator—a threat that if his prey moved even slightly wrong, he’d have them on the ground in seconds. Facing a bank robber or Dick, there was no difference. He wasn’t about to let Dick run away when he was clearly in a bad place.

“Seriously, don’t look at me like that,” Dick muttered. He tried to take a step back but the dumpster stopped him. “I know you’re glaring at me behind that mask.”

“Got it in one, buddy,” Jason drawled. Once he was close enough, he grabbed Dick’s arm and hauled him close.

The fact that Dick didn’t really resist outside of a pointed glower, was more evidence that something was off, wrong. 

Jason ignored the look and searched the man before him. He didn’t see any obvious injuries; not that that meant much in their line of work—they all had an amazing ability to hide injuries until the point of no return. The sensors in his hood weren’t picking up anything nefarious either. No hints of fear gas or whatever bizarre concoction that Poison Ivy came up with that week. 

That left only one other option.

“I’m fine,” Dick protested, the longer Jason stared at him.

“Sure. And it’s totally normal for you nearly face-plant into a wall,” Jason retorted.

Dick shuffled his feet, “Everyone has off days.”

“No, N, you never have off days,” Jason almost growled. 

In all his years of working the streets, Dick had never been allowed to have bad days. Whether because he wouldn’t let himself or because the big Bat wouldn’t, Richard “the boy wonder” Grayson, didn’t have bad days.

Jason kept his grip on Dick’s arm, he lifted his free hand to his hood. He tapped the secret catch release and the hood came free. He set it on top of the dumpster lid.

“Ah, hey cutie,” Dick teased, although the effect was fairly ruined by his current   
position between a dumpster and Jason.

“Hey,” Jason rumbled. He yanked his glove off with his teeth. Hand free, he lifted it to Dick’s forehead. Immediately he pulled it back. “You’re burning up.”

“It’s cause you’re so hot, it’s making me burn up,” Dick joked, that lopsided grin coming back.

Jason shook his head.

“Who let you go out like this?”

“Let?” Dick repeated, some of his humor disappearing. “I don’t need to be told when I can go out.”

“Fine. Let me rephrase,” Jason started, “Why were you stupid enough to come out when you have a fever.”

Dick tried to pull away from Jason but his firm hold kept him in one place. The grin was gone entirely now.

“I’m fine,” Dick repeated.

“Bullshit. You need to be in bed,” Jason argued. He hauled Dick close, almost shaking him in his annoyance. “You need to be drinking fluids and drowning in cough syrup.”

“I don’t have a cough,” Dick pointed out.

Jason glared, “NyQuil then.”

When Dick opened his mouth to start another bullshit argument, Jason cut it off by hauling him into his arms. He rammed his mask back on his head and fished his grapple off his belt. He was polite enough to offer a quick ‘hold on’, before they shot off into the sky.

“Where are we going?” Dick asked over the rush of air. He looped his arms around Jason’s neck.

“My place,” Jason explained, shifting his hand around Dick’s waist for better security.

That grin was back and it was really starting to grind against Jason’s nerves.

“Oh, Mr. Red Hood, you haven’t even bought me dinner,” Dick cooed, lips brushing the smooth surface of Jason helmet.

“At the rate you’re going, you’re going straight to bed,” Jason said.

There was a pause as both of them processed his words. Then Dick started to laugh.

“I didn’t mean it like that!” Jason complained. “Good lord, you’re sick. I’m not going to touch you with a ten foot pole.”

“You’re touching me right now,” Dick reminded.

Jason grumbled under his breath about belligerent sick people and actively ignored Dick’s laughter ringing in his ears. Not for the first time in his life, he was very thankful for his full face helmet. This time around, it successful hid how red his ears had gotten.

Thankfully, they reached Jason’s safe house without much incident. Dick had long since given up arguing with him. His body felt heavy against Jason—the exhaustion was finally setting in and Dick was willingly letting it take him. Now if he just passed out and stayed out, then Jason didn’t have to worry about anything.

“S’nice,” Dick commented, speech drowsy.

Jason had practically shoved him through the balcony door inside the apartment. He closed the balcony door behind him and locked it. The helmet was removed again and dropped on the couch.

Wordlessly, he headed to the bedroom to turn the heater on.

It was one of his better safe houses, closer to the richer districts of Gotham. Almost all of his ‘treasures’ were tucked inside—all the books Alfred had gifted him, a tasteful statue that Selina had ‘acquired’ for him and a top of the line laptop that he’d convinced Tim to build for him. If he was honest, it was the only safe house that he considered home.

Dick moved slowly, taking in the details. How clean it was, how it smelled like cinnamon and sandalwood. A worn, well-loved novel by Jane Austen was on the coffee table beside a half finished mug of tea.

“Does Bruce know about this place?” Dick asked, standing in the doorway to the bedroom.

“No and I’d like to keep it that way,” Jason said, a thinly veiled threat behind the words. He was folding down the thick blankets on a large, soft looking bed. After a pause, he added, “Alfred knows.”

Dick nodded. No matter how tense things with Bruce became, Alfred was the one link they all shared.

Jason kept his back to Dick as he shuffled around the room. He pulled some pajamas out of the dresser and tossed them at Dick’s head.

“Put those on,” Jason commanded.

“Where are you going?” Dick asked as Jason shouldered past him.

“To make you some tea,” Jason answered.

By the time Jason returned with a steaming mug of tea and some medicine, Dick was thankfully tucked into bed. He had all the blankets tucked up to his chin and was doing his level best to become one with the plush pillows.

“Damn, this is a comfy bed,” Dick muttered. “Livin’ in the lap of luxury, Jaybird.”

Jason frowned at the rumpled pile of Dick’s costume on the floor. He stepped around it and over to the bed. The medicine and tea were set on the nightstand.

“What can I say? I like my creature comforts,” he said. He shifted to sit down on the edge of the bed. “Why did you come out tonight?”

Dick peeked up at him from under the mound of comforters. He stared at Jason for a long moment, obviously debating on which answer to go with—joking, like normal, or the truth, like Jason wanted. Finally, he caved.

“Tim’s laid up with a broken arm,” he admitted. “I promised B I’d come out.”

“Does he know you have a cold?” Jason pressed. 

Either one of them would’ve been upset to know that Dick had a cold. Tim probably would’ve gone out anyway to prevent Dick from having the sniffles.

Dick shook his head.

Jason sighed, shoving a hand through his hair. Sometimes, it was easier to stop being angry. He lowered his hand to where he thought Dick’s shoulder might be.

“Stay here, at least for tonight,” he said.

“Can I stay here forever?” Dick asked, grin back and a little stronger than before.

“You just like me for my pillows.”

Dick’s eyes obviously dropped down to Jason’s chest, still covered in the tight leather of his uniform. His grin widened, almost lavacious.

Jason shoved his hand against Dick’s cheek and pressed him into the pillows. He was fighting his own amusement.

“Take your medicine and go to sleep,” he said, only relenting when Dick started to laugh and bat at his hand.

“Yes, nurse,” Dick said, pushing himself to a sitting position He accepted the medicine that Jason handed him. “Can I get a reward for being a good patient?”

Jason watched him finish his medicine and take a sip of tea before he leaned down and pressed his lips to Dick’s forehead. He knew the second he spotted Dick that night that something was wrong. Silently, secretly, he was glad he caught up to him before anyone else did.

“Only really good patients get a lollipop,” he murmured as he pulled back. He was beyond delighted that that the flush on Dick’s face couldn’t be blamed entirely on his cold.

**Author's Note:**

> Written for volaviwrites on Tumblr -- Hit me up on Twitter (@huneythirst) if ya wanna chat!


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